Real Family
by celia203
Summary: Johnny finds himself all alone on Christmas morning, and finds himself wishing for something more.


A/N: Just a brief oneshot of my favorite characters in my favorite story. I thought it'd be a good way to start Christmas. Read and review!

Disclaimer: The characters used in this fanfic do not belong to me.

Johnny's feet kicked at the snow as he walked. It was Christmas morning. Ponyboy had invited him to have Christmas with them, and the gang would probably come, but Johnny didn't want to. Even though he'd have all of them, he'd still be alone.

Two-Bit had his mom and his sister. Steve, even though they fought sometimes, had his dad. Ponyboy, Sodapop, and Darry had each other. Dallas probably wouldn't show. Johnny had no one.

The streets were empty, and the white color of the snow only made the absence feel more intense. He wasn't sure where he would go. All he had was his denim jacket, a black T-shirt, blue jeans, and sneakers. His hands were stuffed in his pockets, but that didn't help anything. It didn't affect him much, though, because he was already accustomed to the cold.

When Johnny looked up from where he'd been walking he realized that he'd made it to the vacant lot. Snow covered the ground, so it wouldn't be very comfortable sticking around here—or anywhere outside for that matter. He let out a sigh and sat down on an old, busted up seat that'd been torn from a car. It was a bit damp, but not chillingly so.

He focused on the ground and thought of what it would be like if his parents weren't the way they were. He thought about opening presents under a decorated tree. It didn't matter to him, though. He'd be happy opening one present under a bush. He thought about having Christmas dinner—a real one—with family. He hadn't really met anyone in his family other than his parents, and he wondered what it would be like to have a big family. Not like the gang, but like _actual_ family. It wasn't wrong for him to think that, right? That gang was his family, and they were family enough, but he longed for something more.

The wind had begun to blow. He heaved a sigh and began contemplating what he should do next, when suddenly he felt something on his lap.

It was a box that'd been wrapped in newspaper and tied with a shoelace. When he looked up, he saw Dallas Winston standing over him.

"Open it," he said. His voice was unenthusiastic and had no emotion, even though it seemed like it should have.

Slowly, Johnny undid the shoelace and opened the box. The box was too well wrapped; it didn't look like something Dally could do, but Johnny knew not to underestimate him.

Inside the box was a blanket. It was faded and old-looking, but it was a thick blanket. Johnny wrapped it around himself. It was warm.

He looked up at Dally. He didn't know what to say.

"I know what it's like to not have family on Christmas. When Soda told me you weren't coming to their house today, I knew you were bummed about it," Dally said.

Johnny smiled a little. "You didn't have to do this for me,"

Dallas sat down next to him and gave him a pat on the back. "I sorta did. It was a," Dally searched for the right words. "A personal thing,"

Johnny smiled at him. "Thanks, Dal," Johnny looked at the box and went back to his thoughts for a second. His smile faded fast.

Dallas noticed Johnny's expression. "You know, you don't have to stay strong all the time,"

At first, Johnny was confused. That didn't sound like something Dally would say, but Johnny eventually replied with, "Neither do you,"

Dally laughed a little. "You're a tuff kid, Johnnycake,"

When Johnny didn't say anything Dally spoke, "Do you maybe want to go to the Curtis house now?"

Johnny thought about it for a second. He reached his verdict. "Sure. I bet they're missin' us down there anyway,"

They stood up and began walking. Dallas stopped Johnny after a few seconds. "Don't you dare tell a soul I got you that blanket. I don't want no one thinkin' I'm soft, got it?"

_That_ was the Dallas Winston Johnny knew. "Sure thing, Dal," he said.

Ponyboy answered the door and his face lit up when he saw Johnny standing there.

"I didn't think you wanted to come," he said.

Johnny shrugged. "I changed my mind."

Dallas let himself in. "Did you guys get me anything?" he asked loudly.

"Come on, Johnny. I bet there's a present or two for you. Where'd you get that blanket?" Pony said as he escorted his buddy into the house.

It seemed like everyone was there. The whole gang showed up, even Two-Bit's mom and sister were there. Steve's dad didn't come, but Steve seemed to be enjoying the party. Everyone was laughing and smiling and exchanging gifts and eating chocolate cake.

Two-Bit was going on about something—probably telling some story with the way he was laughing all the way through it. Sodapop and Steve were having an arm wrestling contest. Darry was trying to get everyone to settle down, and Dally was giving him a hard time about it.

Ponyboy seemed excited to have Johnny there. "I'm glad you came, Johnny. I had the craziest dream I wanted you to hear about. You know that guy Bob from school? Well, he and a couple of friends were drowning me, and you stepped in with your switch…" Johnny really wasn't paying any attention.

He thought about what he was thinking of earlier with a real family and stuff, but the more he looked around, the more he realized that wasn't really what he wanted. The gang _was_ the family he wanted. This _was_ what he wanted. He _was_ surrounded by family on Christmas.

Dally caught Johnny's gaze and snuck a smile his way. Johnny was glad he came.

"…and then we made it to this church in Windrixville. I think it was on Jay Hill or something like that, and we got there and you had to go to the store and…"

"Hey, why don't you just write it all down and I'll read it later?" Johnny suggested.

"That's a good idea." Pony remarked. "Sorry I've been so talkative, I'm just glad you decided to come."

Johnny looked around again. "I am, too, Ponyboy."


End file.
